Cheater
by Iveki Contrez
Summary: Joshua loved to gamble. He never wormed his way out of a bet, but in the end, he's just a cheat, isn't he?


KVGC 'ere, first fic...dont really expect much, but critics do help I guessXD *hint hint ^^*

I don't own Fire Emblem or any of their stuff..or anything at all for that matter-_- (--- legal shinannery ^^)

The cloak of the night hid all of the land. The forest was filled with a deathly silence; even the footsteps of the insects can be heard from afar. The darkness was strong and overpowering. Not even the light of the moon dared to show its face during this time of twilight. The only shine that stood out was that of a lone fire, its embers revealing all that lay hidden in the surrounding darkness. A group of tents accompany the lonesome fire, and in one tent was an empty sleeping bag. An odd, almost wedge-shaped hat takes its place at one end of the sleeping bag. Outside in the darkness, no more than a few kilometres away, a silhouette wanders to and fro'. It was pacing, almost as if something troubled him greatly. His red hair was burning dark and deep like a fire tinted with evil and melancholy. Finally fed up with his endless pacing, he sat by a stream that flowed westward. The flowing water found respite around small bedrock where it calmed into a slick sheet that could pass for a mirror. With a sigh, the red-head mercenary looked up, observing the small piece of natural beauty in front of him. The few stars whose light braved the darkness made it possible for him to see the assortment of red, blue, and lavender flowers on the sides of the calm water. He could see the cattails and lilies that sat as still as the water they resided in, the trees whose branches scattered the starlight across the scene, and the silence of the forest emitted a calm, almost relaxing aura.

This did nothing to ease Joshua's mood. Pain, sorrow, guilt, and regret, these are what Joshua came to "befriend" these past few months. Sure in battle his skill is not hindered, sure he smiles and jokes as he always does, and sure he still gambles with his companions and sometimes cheats. Cheat. The word echoed through his mind like a yell echoing off mountains. The mercenary could sit no longer; so he got up, sword drawn. He felt the negativity flow through his body as if it was the very blood that kept him alive. It would always be there; the guilt created sorrow, the sorrow then turned to regret, all three caused him pain, and the pain would morph back into guilt.

_"_I guess my luck's finally run out_"_ he thought bitterly.

His mind wandered into the past, back to that fateful day in Serafew. The town, the weather, and the people were all a blur in his mind. Only one voice resonated from his memories. It was as clear as glass, and more soothing than a melodic lullaby.

" _Ahhh! P-pardon me_." The first words she said to him. "_You've been hired to silence me, haven't you..."_

"_Yeah...Don't feel bad. It's not personal_" A small, dark chuckle escaped his lips. Even then, he never would have really hurt her. "_Tell me, do you like to gamble?"_

_"What?!"_

A single bet, a bet that he lost, brought them together that day. The more he thought about her, the more he hated himself. Joshua brought up his sword and struck the tree closest to him, fury fuelling his slash.

"_Say, you want to make a bet?"_

"_Another...bet? Right here? In the middle of this battlefield? What did you intend to bet on this time?"_

_"That you're gonna fall for me, sooner or later." _

As these words echoed through his mind his slashes became more intense , each filled with more negativity, more hate, than the last. The last bet that they made is what came into his mind next.

_"Will I make you happy? That's what we'll bet on. Are you in, or what?"_

_"What I'm betting is my future, my happiness."_ She put everything on the line for him.

_"Natasha... ... I can't afford to lose this one." _

_"You're right... And I hope from the bottom of my heart that you win."_ She really did love him.

_"Don't worry. In a pinch, I never lose. Well, I mean, I lose sometimes. But not this time!" _

That never came to be... In the end, he really did lose.

"I'm just a cheat in the end, aren't I?" He was yelling now, furiously hacking away at the tree in a blind, restless, and relentless rage. "I've forsaken her love, I broke her heart... What the hell was I thinking?!" At those last words, his sword shattered, leaving the blade only half as long as it once was.

The desert prince fell to his knees, his thoughts flooded with a beautiful blond cleric. A laugh he'll never again hear, a smile he'll never again see, and warmth that will never warm him up ever again. Tears were flowing from his eyes, but he didn't care to wipe them away. For a long while he's been like this, and for a while longer he knows that he'll stay this way.

Exhaustion overcame Joshua. The mercenary was tired and he knew it. Hacking away at that tree was really taxing and yelling didn't help save his energy. He lay down on the floor, to tired to even walk back to the camp, he decided to sleep here. The red haired prince took a coin from his pocket and examined it carefully. Both sides were heads. "Just a cheat in the end, aren't I." He muttered to himself as drowsiness took hold of him. With pain as his pillow, sorrow for his sheets, guilt for his bed and regret for the mattress, Joshua slept. He fell asleep with ease that night, despite his pains. Though his mind was at a temporary peace, the image he projected as he slept says otherwise. If someone were to see him now they would swear that even in his sleep there were tears still flowing freely from his eyes.


End file.
